State might push wells farther away from buildings

Jan. 3, 2013

Written by

If you go

The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission will hold a hearing on the proposed new oil and gas well drilling rules Monday through Wednesday at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel, 1550 Court Place in Denver. The hearings will begin at

9 a.m. each day.

More

ADVERTISEMENT

If an energy company wants to drill an oil and gas well today, it has to drill that well 350 feet away from any home or school. In rural areas, it’s 150 feet.

That space between buildings and oil and gas wells — a distance known as a “setback” — could soon expand to 500 feet under proposed new rules the state could finalize next week.

The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission on Monday unveiled its proposal for new oil and gas drilling rules that would mandate expanded setbacks and groundwater testing around new oil and gas wells. The commission will deliberate the rules during a three-day hearing beginning Monday in Denver.

Some Northern Colorado residents living near oil and gas development have long pushed for the state to require oil and gas wells to be drilled farther away from homes and schools to minimize any negative impacts the wells might have on public health.

Since the end of 2008 in Larimer County, the state has approved three oil and gas wells for locations between 150 and 350 feet from the nearest building, and three more that are between 350 and 500 feet from the nearest building, according to COGCC data as of Nov. 6.

During the past four years in Weld County, the state has approved 384 oil and gas wells for locations less than 500 feet from buildings, six of those less than 150 feet away, COGCC data show.

• Allow oil and gas drilling within 1,000 feet of schools, nursing homes and hospitals only if a public hearing is conducted;

• Require groundwater sampling near oil and gas drilling sites before and after drilling to monitor drinking water aquifers for contamination;

• Possibly require energy companies to capture gases being emitted from wells to reduce odors and air emissions.

The proposed rules will not affect how closely homes can be built to existing oil and gas wells.

In a statement, COGCC director Matt Lepore said the rules make Colorado a “pacesetter” for oil and gas regulation, calling the rules “unprecedented nationally.”

(Page 2 of 2)

Lepore said he understands that the rules won’t satisfy everyone.

The Colorado Oil and Gas Association has long opposed increased setbacks. Last week, the group issued a statement opposing a 1,000 foot setback, which did not end up in the proposed rules.

The group claims new setbacks will cause greater environmental and economic damage to the region by pushing new oil and gas wells into undeveloped agricultural and open space lands.

COGA’s statement said increased setbacks will increase the cost of accessing oil and gas resources while reducing the amount of land available for farming, hurting farmers’ economic viability in coming years.

Save the Poudre’s Gary Wockner, speaking for Clean Water Action and the Sierra Club, called the 500-foot setback rule “a farce” and said oil and gas wells should be drilled no closer to buildings than 2,000 feet.

He said more groundwater sampling should be mandatory and local governments should have the ability to ban oil and gas drilling within municipal boundaries.